Eid was celebrated in the federal capital with religious fervor amidst rising security concerns.
The recreational spots of Rawalpindi and Islamabad were thronged with residents, enjoying the joyous occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr.
Residents rushed to the Rawal Lake View Park, Rawal Dam, Fatima Jinnah Park, Shakarparian, Daman-e-Koh and Pir Sohawa in Islamabad and the Nawaz Sharif, Ayub, Safari, Race Course and Jinnah parks in Rawalpindi to enjoy Eid festivities.
“It is really very exciting to enjoy Eid at the aesthetically developed recreational spots,” said Javed Khan, who had come
to the Rawal Lake View Park with his family.
“We have a lot of fun and we are also planning to cook a meal,” said Muhammad Qasim, who was at Pir Sohawa with his friends.
Despite the lack of public transport and the exorbitantly high taxicab rates on all three days, scores of people still managed to reach the recreational spots.
However, several families were not satisfied with the attitude of some youngsters and urged the local administration to take notice and deploy security personnel so the picnicking families would not face similar problems in future.
It was disturbing to see some youngsters plying motorcycles without silencers while the traffic police played the role of a silent spectator.
The parking areas of Daman-e-Koh and Pir Sohawa were packed to capacity, triggering parking problems, which was quite unusual for such places.
Additionally, a large number of have complained that shopkeepers at the Lakeview Park, Pir Sohawa, Shakarparian, Daman-e-Koh and the Yasmin Gardens were not following the prescribed rate lists and over-charging the customers.
They seemed troubled by the skyrocketing prices of edible items being sold at stalls of picnic spots while the authorities concerned looked least interested to address the problem.
The prices of soft drinks, potato chips, biscuits and burgers in these stalls were twice of those being charged in the open markets.
